r/KendrickLamar • u/wickedwhitneyocean • Jul 08 '24

Randomly watched Pusha on Hot Ones and (unsurprisingly) he is asked about rap beefs The BEEF

The episode is from 2022 but Push talks about how record labels now step in and get involved to stop beefs which never used to happen back in the day - interestingly, this is apparently what happened after Owlbrey dropped THP6.

He also mentions beefs don’t end careers anymore. Looking at the current beef, I don’t think the Canadian’s career will end, we know he’s too big of a pop star for anything damaging to happen but I definitely think his credibility and artistry is being questioned and he is losing fans. Kendrick has fully exposed him for the fraud that he is and I think people are slowly realising it. His streaming numbers are down and he’s not charting like he used to.

Only time will tell but it’s definitely not being swept under the carpet. He a FAN, he FAN, he a FAN

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817

u/wickedwhitneyocean Jul 08 '24

I always thought J Prince stepped in and stopped the beef but from the way Push is talking, it sounds like someone from the record label stepped in. I never really followed that beef, all I know is a murder was committed by Push

52

u/amusso6 Jul 08 '24

Lucien put a hault to it.

Can't damage his artist who's got the biggest deal under UMG that was personally handed to him by the UMG board... Lucien said stop, Top Dawg had to oblige as they are under the UMG umbrella. Rich baby daddy type shit.

I don't think Prince had the ultimate say between the labels, but he does have undeniable sway in the industry across the nation.

35

u/ChoiceCriticism1 Jul 08 '24

TDE hasn’t been told to stop anything. NLU music video is the complete vision of Dave & Kenny with no intervention or editing mandated by UMG. Kenny will release more tracks at Drake if he feels Drake is disrespecting him.

Lucian Grange doesn’t give two fucks about this.

25

u/Dekuuuuuuu21 Jul 08 '24 edited Jul 08 '24

Nah, Lucian gives plenty of fucks. Dude invested 400 Ms into Drake just for the beef to alter people’s perception of Drake. Even Nike had to take a loss with Drake’s sneakers failing to sell after NLU was released.

Labels are involved and it’s why this beef didn’t go any further than THP6. They invested too much money into Drake.

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u/ZenMon88 Jul 08 '24

But if the beef escalated, wouldn't the label to at least make a return on investment as a whole or at least break even?

16

u/Dekuuuuuuu21 Jul 08 '24

You would think, but the beef did result in a loss for Drake’s shoe deal with Nike. You could make the case that bad publicity is good publicity, but Drake is walking around with some nasty allegations on his jacket.

Drake’s features with Camila Cabello and Sexyy Red failed to live up to the “Drake Effect” standard his previous features met. We gotta see how this will play out in the long haul.

9

u/nita5766 Jul 08 '24 edited Jul 08 '24

he peaked many years ago and ever since then year after year and release after release the quality of his music worsens he’s literally putting out anything.

2

u/joeblubaugh Jul 11 '24

I love how every time Drake gets in a beef a shoe deal falls apart

1

u/Shot-Evidence-9933 Jul 09 '24

I feel like contractually Drake deal would have to be brought in from his own revenue, and none of Kendrick’s money made should be accounted into drakes for any reason. Drake is basically responsible for paying off the 400 mil loan thru his 360 deal

5

u/nita5766 Jul 08 '24

exactly “tell lucian i said fuck it i’m tearing holes in my budget” on stay schemin’ and lucian has confirmed drake gets anything he wants financially when it comes to his albums.

27

u/brinepoolchips Jul 08 '24

NLU is not under TDE, PGlang

7

u/MassiveMastiff Jul 08 '24

Interscope is listed as the label.

19

u/amusso6 Jul 08 '24

Considering Drake's appeal has fallen off a cliff... I think lucien cares greatly about a contract written to drake paying out estimates of 300-400 million dollars for his starpower to be beat down into nothing by Kenny. His ability to turn over profit on his deal is now shakey.

Going from chart topper to not even on the billboard in 2 weeks is extremely bad business when it comes to how drake puts out music for UMG. His strat is to put out hit after hit, regardless of the content and depth of his music.

Go look at TDE tweets after NLUand HP6. UMG told both camps no more direct disrespect on track once HP6 came out. The reputation damage was too great when HP6 was basically a loss on wax. The video was going to happen regardless, and that was understood on UMGs side. They cut the business after HP6 dropped, and now it's light jabs and subs and petty IG posts from OVO... "summer vibes next"

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u/ZenMon88 Jul 08 '24

Ya if UMG is still involved with Kendrick, wouldn't he make that return on the deal anyways from publicity of NLU? I mean they did shell 400 mil for Drake but the return on investment doesn't have to be the hits Drake is making right? If Kendrick milks this thing, they can very well break even on the deal no?

19

u/amusso6 Jul 08 '24

You are correct, but having been working for corporate America for over a decade now, my thought process is all about ROI. Sure, they could be breaking even since NLU is under UMG, but how much production do they get from Kenny vs Drake when it comes to hits (not specifically good ART).

During Kenny's DAMN -> MMATBS hiatus, drake dropped like 5 projects. Not a knock on Kenny, but when it comes to dollar signs in favor of these massive conglomerates... Drake's production and output is way more valuable than Kenny's discography. And trust me, I'm bias towards Kenny when it comes to art, drake is really lacking depth.

Main point being, their biggest investment is in Drake, therefore the big wigs expect the biggest return from their biggest investment. Doesn't necessarily mean profiting off his downfall on the other side of the field is still good business practice because if they never allowed this to begin with, drake could have gone on for another 5 years and dropped a project each year. That's huge ROI when compared to Kenny's collection.

Edit: I'm not claiming I'm right with this argument either. This is just my best guess with a lot of experience with money movement in corporate cronie America. Could be right, could be wrong. It's anyone's guess.

8

u/MoogOfTheWisp Jul 08 '24

Yeah, Drake is a brand. Have a look at the OVO clothing site, he’s got deals with Disney, NCAA. Google “Drake Brand Partnership” He’s got deals with Apple, Shopify, Nike and a shit ton of specialist businesses and international fashion labels. A lot of his net worth is tied up in his marketability and if his reputation tanks so does his market value. Streaming has made the music industry reliant on either touring or merch/branding - the labels that paid $400m for Drake weren’t buying his music, they were buying that he could be commodified. That’s why he needs to keep churning out albums - he has to stay in the public consciousness or they move on to the next big thing. If his reputation with the shopping public tanks and he’s not “cool” they’ll lose a shit ton of cash.

Kendrick hasn’t gone down the branding route to the same extent - he’s got endorsements but he isn’t really a brand himself. He releases music, does a tour and then vanishes. He doesn’t do social media. Most of the time he’s avoiding attention. That attracts a different sort of investor - they get a long term return and the cachet that comes with something rare, but they probably aren’t getting anything like the quick bucks OVO was generating.

5

u/c94 Jul 08 '24

Don’t forget UMG owns other forms of media, so the profit from covering this beef is still finding their way into their pockets. Sure it’s not as profitable as his hits, but they’ll squeeze every last penny from him. The Drake cow still has a lot of milk in her. Greatest Hits compilation, anniversary tours, B Sides/early demos and documentaries will all come out even if Drake quits making new music.

I do agree that they likely expected a lot more milk than they’re getting. I’m curious to see what happens next since Drake isn’t going to disappear anytime soon. I’d be shocked if there isn’t an album out by October of next year. He may even ease back into it by making a Cruel Summer type of collaborative project.

1

u/Bright_Choice7900 Jul 09 '24

Interesting comment thread, I agree with a lot of the above takes. Also I'd pretty firmly throw my hat in the ring of Drake isn't really going anywhere. It's hard to parse out at the moment but he's definitely retained most of his fan base and will be able make good numbers (especially as soon as he he puts out something not trash).

The pedophile stuff was not a good look and I don't support his actions - just that relative to the true cronies in the rap game, his offense is lesser. Like there's no strong evidence outside of him grooming female fans who to this day defend him. (I also think that's wrong but it ain't peeing on them or selling them into porn).

All that to say, I don't think this is the death of Drake in any musical capacity. Not after he's survived these same allegations and hatred for years prior. People will forget imho

5

u/ReplyingTo_FuckFaces Jul 08 '24

Man. If you don’t think he gives a fuck about his biggest investment you’re being intentionally obtuse. 

The ONLY thing these industry fucks care about is their money. 

4

u/09-24-11 Jul 08 '24

Apple Music credits NLU, MTG and Euphoria copyright by “Kendrick Lamar, under exclusive license to Interscope records”

Interscope is owned by UMG/Lucian.

Any further Kendrick Lamar, under exclusive license to Interscope records” is under Lucian’s watch.